UC Researchers on the Spot in Crete: Reshaping Tourism's Future Before Island is Loved to Death Date: July 13, 2000 By: Marianne Kunnen-Jones Contact: (513) 556-1826 Photos by: Lisa Ventre Archive: Research News Hersonissos, Crete -- Most visitors come to Crete to sun themselves on stunning Mediterranean beaches, view ancient remains of Europe's oldest known civilization and enjoy dramatic mountain scenery. This idyllic setting for leisure is one of labor for applied researchers from the University of Cincinnati. Through July 24, a group of 24 UC visitors to this largest of Greek islands are, instead, hard at work in the basement of a municipal building in a room with only four windows, none of which even have a view of sea or vistas. These UC faculty and students aren't here to just see the sights; they are providing wide-ranging expertise needed to help solve the problem of mass tourism, which in Crete, as well as all of Greece, is putting an ever-increasing strain on the environment. Their latest recommendations for the work they began on June 12, in a project that began last summer, will be presented to local citizens and officials next week. The faculty experts in planning, biology, architecture, communication and anthropology, assisted by students, are working under the University of Cincinnati Globalization Initiative. The UC Sustainable Development Group is helping Mayor Zacharias Doxastakis and his municipality of Hersonissos make plans that will allow the region's tourist economy to continue to grow without straining the environment and at the same time develop alternative enterprises that will not be as tourist-dependent. According to the UC project leader Michael Romanos, professor of planning, the work is vital because in just 30 years Hersonissos has been transformed from a tiny village of fruit warehouses to a sea of concrete - a tourist destination particularly popular with younger tourists who come for nightlife. "There has been rampant development with no planning. The main road on the coast is congested with traffic, both pedestrian and vehicular. The coastal area is overbuilt," he said. Another UC team member, Frank Wray, assistant professor of biology, compares the area's development appearance to Gatlinburg, Tenn., in the United States. Working with the UC team is the recently expanded 15-member staff of the municipality. That staff is led by Hersonissos Mayor Doxastakis who became convinced of the need for a change of course for the community during summer 1999 when the previous UC Sustainable Development team was at work in Crete. "The work done last summer became the development framework for the municipality," the mayor said through Romanos, who translated into English for him. "The 1999 study has become our thinking framework," the mayor said. The UC-Hersonissos study has become even more important as the deadline for the Third European Union Development Package of financial assistance approaches on July 24. A total of $15 trillion drachma [$3 billion U.S. dollars] will be allocated to Greece alone from 2000-2006, and it is estimated that Crete will get approximately $600 billion drachma [$1.8 billion US dollars} from that amount for general infrastructure, environmental protection, general development programs, agriculture and private investment, Mayor Doxastakis said. Hersonissos will be well-positioned to qualify for some of these funds because of the UC study. "The majority of the municipalities in Greece don't have development proposals or policies," the mayor said. "Hersonissos does." The mayor has learned that two of the chief criteria for receiving funding will be having formal proposals that are consistent with development plans. "They can't just be build to build," he said. Projects must be supported by research. This Third Package is expected to be the last round in this type of funding to be released by the European Community. According to Romanos, of 150 items in Hersonnisos' latest budget plan, there are close to 50 that relate to past UC recommendations. "We are giving them a list of guidelines for development and they are using the guidelines to choose where to put their money, to help identify their priorities. Now they have a framework and a structure which helps them," said Romanos. Among the recommendations moving forward as a result of the UC research are: An eight-block pedestrian walkway along the two-kilometer main strip of hotels and businesses: It will be limited to foot traffic or may be open to vehicular traffic only at restricted times. "Congestion in the crowded seafront hotel, bar and retail strip makes it very difficult to supply businesses and very unsafe for pedestrians," Romanos said. Transformation of abandoned schools and other buildings in interior villages into cultural/educational/arts centers: Tourism supports an economic boom along the coastal areas while interior village are slowly dying. "Young people from these villages are leaving. Agriculture is dying, and a beautiful way of life is disappearing," Romanos said. While some coastal areas have done some restoration to attract tourists, the UC team is identifying ways to allow the interior villages to enjoy the economic benefits of tourism in environmentally friendly ways, including centers that may bring artists and performers from abroad or may house local makers of handicrafts like basketweavers or lace makers. A Heritage Corridor that would identify and designate historically significant points of interest for preservation as well as natural areas to be preserved: The latter would be a first for Crete, according to Frank Wray, a UC biologist. The corridor would entice tourists into the interior and include markers to explain the significance of the sight or preserve to travelers. A reevaluation of the location of a road that will replace one to be submerged by a new reservoir on the Aposelemis River: The reservoir is planned to supply water to the nearby cities of Heraklion, Agios Nikolaos and Hersonissos. The village of Sfendyli, to be submerged beneath the new reservoir, had little input in the plan until Romanos intervened with his first team of UC experts last summer. Because of UC efforts, the residents of the village are now in discussions to establish a new location for their tiny community and compensation for their land investments. While national officials have suggested moving the road that will be flooded by the reservoir to the southwest side of the valley, the UC team has suggested that a new road to the northeast might be less environmentally damaging and would increase accessibility to the villages of the valley. An undisturbed major grove of native trees, a rare find on the island of Crete and an aesthetically and environmentally crucial element for the region, would be eliminated by the southwest road. Alternative business enterprises: From October to April, the tourist industry closes down, which puts the local economy at the mercy of the tourist season. Alternative economic enterprises would help to make the region less dependent on one sector. Of the 750 businesses registered with the local chamber of commerce, 42 percent are hotels and restaurants and 42 percent are retail. Helping the municipality develop more citizen participation in planning: So far, Greece has used little "bottom-up" consultation with citizenry when it comes to major public projects. There is now more interest in developing grassroots participation and involvement in Hersonissos as a result of the UC team work and the mayor's interest. Additional recommendations will be released at a public presentation next week. The summer 1999 public presentation was attended by more than 250 people. Mayor Doxastakis says the UC studies are helping his municipality prioritize needs and plans for the use of natural resources in an objective manner, because the development plans are prepared by outside experts who are highly qualified, experienced, and objective. The UC faculty have not developed their proposals in academic isolation. The UC teams have spent many hours out in the communities interviewing citizens and consulting with local business leaders and organizations. The mayor added: "These studies also represent many different disciplines that see things very globally. They carry with them the recognition of the technical know-how of an American university. This level of know-how and expertise and field experience is not available usually, even if you hire professional consultants. We know this is high-quality stuff." The UC faculty and students are working in four teams: Tourism: Romy Borooah, an anthropolist and assistant director of women's studies; Mahyar Arefi, assistant professor of planning; and students Erik Baiamonte, John Lateulere and Suzannah Mathur. Community Design: Brenda Scheer, associate professor of planning; David Scheer, adjunct assistant professor of architecture; Kiril Stanilov, assistant professor of planning; and students Mike Brachat, Sean Bender and Susan McClure. Regional Development: Michael Romanos, professor of planning and project leader, also a native of Crete; Carla Chifos, assistant professor of sustainable development; Frank Wray, assistant professor of biology at UC's Raymond Walters College; Johanna Looye, associate professor of planning; and students David White, Elizabeth Wolfe and Chris Ruthemeyer. Community Citizen Participation: Maria Kreppel, professor of English and communication; Mary Ellen Ashley, former UC administrator now with Northern Essex Community College in Boston; Judith Bogart, a Cincinnati-based consultant; and students Carrie Knose, William Colgan, Pamela McMillan. Funding for the UC team, about $125,000 in all, is coming from the city of Hersonissos, UC's Faculty Development Council, UC's Institute for Global Studies and Affairs, UC's School of Planning and UC's College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning. To read more about the UC team's efforts on behalf of small businesses, the environment, and the design of public spaces, click here.